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Post by High Sierra Fan on Mar 8, 2020 11:34:55 GMT -8
The canisters. The empty canisters to be specific.
So a couple of years ago I got a Pocket Rocket and found it fast and convenient for my boiling water needs. Not great in a breeze but acceptable. Light, simple, acceptably fast boiler.
Then on my recent long road trip the empties started piling up. It wasn’t as blatant on my backpacks as for only ten days that’s only one or two but a two month long trip largely either backpacking or staying in national park front country campgrounds and it’s clear: canister stoves generate a LOT of trash.
So I’m thinking it’s back to my DragonFly. Roughly the same boil time and with having to carry out the empty canisters I’m not even sure there’s a weight penalty.
Anybody else switch back?
Oh and as I often visits places with a ban on stoves not having a valve alcohol variants aren’t suitable.
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Post by trinity on Mar 8, 2020 12:19:27 GMT -8
This certainly bothers me, but I don't think I'm willing to go back to the old Whisperlite. We do normally use a white gas stove when car camping, but for now I'm sticking with either the Pocket Rocket Deluxe or Caldera Cone on backpacking trips. We did recently pick up a Jetboil Crunchit, which at least allows us to recycle the empty canisters.
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texasbb
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Post by texasbb on Mar 8, 2020 12:53:38 GMT -8
I can see that as an issue for thru hikes. For regular backpacking trips I've found this little doohickey to be priceless. I can buy the bigger "bulk" gas canisters and just refill the smaller ones I take on trips.
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Post by swmtnbackpacker on Mar 8, 2020 12:58:10 GMT -8
I’ve seen other backpackers take Rambo knives and stab the empty, perhaps making it safe for eventual recycling (think the gas residue is still an issue).
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swiftdream
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Post by swiftdream on Mar 8, 2020 13:24:45 GMT -8
I have always punctured with chisel and hammer and recycled, just toss in with the rest of the cans and bottles. I did call to make sure and they do. No trash in the landfill.
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toejam
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Post by toejam on Mar 9, 2020 4:35:16 GMT -8
Ice ax works great to puncture cans. I stopped feeling guilty when I switched to a Jetboil and cut my consumption in half.
Dragonfly is a good stove though. Something kinda romantic about the excessive volume when it's burning - like you're on an expedition.
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jazzmom
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Post by jazzmom on Mar 9, 2020 5:02:47 GMT -8
I can see that as an issue for thru hikes. For regular backpacking trips I've found this little doohickey to be priceless. I can buy the bigger "bulk" gas canisters and just refill the smaller ones I take on trips. Thanks for this -- exactly what I need! I have the "crunchit" tool but end up with a bunch of canisters with "just a little" gas left that I set aside to take car-camping to use with a canister lantern. Right now, I have a life-time supply. :/
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texasbb
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Post by texasbb on Mar 9, 2020 7:34:54 GMT -8
Thanks for this -- exactly what I need! Glad to be of assistance! The instruction sheet for mine was in Chinese (or maybe Korean, I forget), but it's easy to use. I put the canister to be filled in a bowl of water with a couple of ice cubes, screw the valve and full canister on top, press the cleaning button very briefly to shoot out any air in the system (I guess it releases about as much gas as when you unscrew your stove from a canister if you do it right), then open the valve and wait a bit. Unfortunately, there's no way to know when the bottom canister is "full." I note the weight of the thing when new (it's written on the side) and weigh each one after I've refilled it. If it's heavier than the original, I reverse the top/bottom positions and trickle a little back into the source canister.
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ErnieW
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Post by ErnieW on Mar 9, 2020 17:00:27 GMT -8
I can see that as an issue for thru hikes. For regular backpacking trips I've found this little doohickey to be priceless. I can buy the bigger "bulk" gas canisters and just refill the smaller ones I take on trips. I was going to post about needing a scale but you more than covered it in your later post. I love this transfer valve. I can always leave with a full can and use my cans by refilling others all the way to the end. For anyone interested I fill my small MSR cans to 113g. Also, and this is very important, only refill from the same kind/brand of gas. Different brands have different vapor pressures and different strength cans. I have read if you try to refill something like an MSR can with pure propane it will rupture the can. Its tempting since propane will work at much colder temps but it needs the heavy kind of can it comes in.
Another thing you can do with this valve is not attach a refill can, open the valve and empty the last little bit from a can. You could do this with your stove but it is quicker with this valve. Then I stab the can with a screwdriver a few times and throw it in the metal recycling. Wear googles and be aware this could result in a boom.
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rangewalker
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Post by rangewalker on Mar 17, 2020 18:59:48 GMT -8
I have a JEt Boil Crunch-it tool and the last stop for all my canisters has been a MSR 2017 Wind Pro that is liquid feed. My recycling district will take the steel canisters if punched out.
I use my Whispelite International and '84 XGK in winter and snow cover. When I have to melt snow or cook in a group, those two are a blessing. Last they work better above 10K. When a teen and in college the Bluet puncture top stoves cured me of canisters for a couple of decades. Now, most of my water boiling is done on canister stoves and the guilt is lessened by the fact that steel is the leading recycled material.
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Post by High Sierra Fan on Mar 17, 2020 19:27:38 GMT -8
Aren’t the isobutane mix canisters aluminum? Steel is the big green Coleman propane ones where, iirc, steel is required to resist the higher vapor pressure.
Same principle since aluminum is also recyclable.
Yah. The Butane Bluet were fine out in the desert but with a vaporization temperature of 32f sort of useless in anything too cold.
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swiftdream
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Post by swiftdream on Mar 18, 2020 11:52:31 GMT -8
HSF, the MSR canisters and the Snow Peak that I use are both steel, both the main canister body and the arched bottom. They are highly magnetic.
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Post by High Sierra Fan on Mar 18, 2020 12:04:55 GMT -8
HSF, the MSR canisters and the Snow Peak that I use are both steel, both the main canister body and the arched bottom. They are highly magnetic. Thanks for pointing that out that. My admittedly casual knowledge may be based on those long outdated Bluet canisters which only had to contain their weaker butane. Thinking about it any gas mix suitable for cold weather camping would by the simple physics need a stronger container.
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swiftdream
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Post by swiftdream on Mar 18, 2020 15:21:49 GMT -8
I’ve never used a Bluet but read a book last year called Solo Faces by James Salter who did in his climbing activities. I had to research them at that time. Back in those days of early after years of campfires I turned to white gas Coleman and MSR (both Whisperlite and Dragonfly) before getting a Snow Peak Gigapower in the early 2000’s. We use a remote canister Kovea now with a tight, efficient windscreen, a real fuel miser that does make up for its extra weight over a sit on top model.
Those green canister models are excellent for car camping or just a backup emergency stove at home since our entire house is electric only. I keep half a dozen of those heavy, thick steel canisters for use with a big sit on top big burner that really works marvelously for cooking up gourmet meals in n a pinch.
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ErnieW
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Post by ErnieW on Mar 18, 2020 18:20:13 GMT -8
I have one of these to be able to use the green propane cans with my MSR Pocket Rocket: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072QXKVJP/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1Seems to work OK but I have only done brief tests. I figure you can get the greens in a lot more places then an MSR can. Also if need be it should work in the very cold. This is more for car camping.
P.S. Do NOT use this and a transfer valve to try and fill a butane can with propane. BOOM. There is a reason the green cans are so heavy duty.
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